From Paralysis to Fatigue

This book provides a detailed history of psychosomatic illnesses from the 18th century to the end of the 20th century.

It explains how patients, physicians, and cultural factors have collectively shaped the symptoms and diagnoses of these illnesses.

The author, Edward Shorter, draws from physicians' records, medical studies, and period textbooks to illustrate how conditions such as neurasthenia and chronic fatigue syndrome reflect the societal tensions of their time.

The book is particularly insightful on the role of women in the history of psychosomatic illnesses and the inherent sexism in medical practices of the past.